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March 2

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Places to Visit and Explore Nature in Stanley Park Ecosystem Guides: Riparian Stanley Park Visitor Map: with Park Features, Trails, and Destinations Lost Lagoon (N)

Willow Catkin If I had to think of a single image to represent the arrival of spring, I think it would be the image of a pussywillow, the soft, furry, magical flowers that burst forth, even before the appearance ot the willow's first leaves. Two species of willows grow along the north shore of Lost Lagoon. Both are tall shrubs, with crooked branches that suggest a hard life lived in a water-edged world of wind, storm, and sun. These willows like many of our other, native, shrubs and trees that grow close to water are wind pollinated (alders, birches, willows) The willows occupy a narrow (1-2 meter) band of shoreline, squeezed between the Lost Lagoon Loop trail and the open water of the lagoon basin. Only a small portion of Lost Lagoon consists of riparian habitat. Whenever I pass these venerable shrubs, I can't help but wonder how long they've been standing along this altered shore. Were they introduced or did they establish themselves naturally? Lost Lagoon is just one example of Stanley Park's many constructed ecosystems. I doubt that willows grew along the water's edge when this area (Coal Basin - once a shallow arm of the sea) was the upper portion of what we now call Coal Harbour.       Field Guide Entry: ----  Link to be added

Stanley Park Explorer http://www.stanleyparkexplorer.ca Produced by Peter Woods naturalist@stanleyparkexplorer.ca           Revised: May 20, 2011